the hollow light
is still on the fields
where the winter has warmed
and the snows have drained waway
and the hunter's cry
is still on the air
as the bullet flies home
but the heart that's pierced with it
still is racing
still is racing, alone.

the silver shoals
of the light in the deep
brush the glitterin skein
where the great, dark body writhes
and the trembling jaw
the unfathoming sounds
of leviathan, bound
as his heart, though weakening
still is racing
still is racing, alone

7 Comments

General CommentThe legend of the leviathan, if I recall, is that in the early days of Earth's creation, God made two, a male and a female. But soon He found them to be too powerful, too big, and decided He didn't want any little leviathans running amok. To keep them from procreating, God killed off the female, damning her mate to die alone and unwanted.

Song MeaningThis song, like virtually everything else on this haunting and exceptional album, is about the sad horror of man's cruelty to nature and the world and the apocalyptic end that awaits the world as a result. The first verse is about a hunter killing an animal (the slaughter of a tiger is used in the lyrics of the next song on the album, Home Life). The second is probably about a whale but is integrated as pointed out with the image of Leviathan, bound and slowly dying - a bit like the natural world as a result of man's selfish cruelty. Heavy, huh!?

General CommentThis song is based on the documentary Blue Water, White death, about one of the first expeditions to learn more about the Great White Shark. It is an interesting documentary, but there is one scene where they shoot a whale to attract sharks, and they shine lights on the whale from underneath. All in all, a very eerie scene. I heard about this song when Shearwater did NPR's tiny desk concert.

My InterpretationI don't think this is about man's cruelty, more likely about loneliness.

Yes, the metaphor is about Leviathan, a legendary massive creature living in the bottom of the sea. Not strictly speaking an immortal being, but something that lives for a long, long time, destined to be the only one of its kind and ultimately die alone. I just wonder about the first verse. Somehow, even though some animal has been shot, through the heart, it still isn't dying. Maybe that is just the first part of the metaphor, about how your heart still keeps beating although it has been broken by someone?

General CommentI also heard of these guys through NPR's Tiny Desk Concerts, I listened to a couple of the tracks and brought the album. The whole album is beautiful and I'll be getting the others soon.
This is currently my favourite song on the album, it brings tears to my eyes. The combination of the melody, his voice, the lyrics, the slight change in the chord structure in the 2nd verse, it's just perfect.